Chapter 6 – Skills

The cool, refreshing winds of the northeast sweep through the village, carrying with them a hint of chill. The warm, golden rays of the eastern sun make their way into the homes of the innocent, casting a gentle glow on their peaceful slumber. Towering above, the Hokage monument stands as a silent guardian, its gaze fixed on the village below, hoping for a future filled with glory and prosperity.

Yesterday, both Naruto and Raito were able to learn new things; jutsu and techniques.

How crazy it is… Naruto stayed awake and alert with a book in his hand? But it is only acceptable for the first half. After that he was making all kinds of noise inside his little bedroom.

Raito, on the other hand, was fully utilizing the capabilities of the Gamer's mind and body. As the sun rose, he awoke feeling refreshed and brimming with energy, ready to tackle whatever challenges the new day might bring.

As he slowly emerged from the depths of sleep, a smile spread across Raito's face. He stretched his arms above his head, feeling the pleasant ache in his muscles as he did so. "Gamer's mind and Gamer's body is really something." he mused to himself.

Raito exited his room and made his way to the door opposite his. He lightly knocked on the door and called out, "Naruto, wake up."

After making the brief announcement, Raito quickly scanned his checklist and began his morning routine.

Sticking to his schedule, he headed to the bathroom, tidied up the house, and was just about to head outside for his morning stretch when he realized that Naruto was still not up. "Is he still asleep?" he wondered.

"Oi, Goldie," Raito said as he looked at the seal on the door that had not been activated. He let out a sigh and opened the door to Naruto's room, stepping inside.""You didn't even use the seal, baka," he said, shaking his head.

'[Observe]'

Name: Uzumaki Naruto Lvl 5

Title: Ninja Academy Student (+25% Exp till level 10)

Age: 12

HP: 2500

CP: 4000

STR: 18

VIT: 40

DEX: 14

INT: 40

WIS: 6

LUK: ???

Uzumaki Naruto is the son of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina. He is the current dead last of the academy.

As Raito entered Naruto's room, he found him still fast asleep, his mouth slightly open and drool escaping onto his chin. His limbs were twisted at odd angles, giving him an awkward sleeping posture that made Raito chuckle.

'Low level, high chakra, messed up stat distribution, and questionable luck. Just what is this?'

'My stat distribution is way better.' Raito snorted then looked at the snoring Naruto.

Without hesitation, Raito grabbed the blankets and gave them a sharp tug, pulling Naruto off the bed and onto the floor with a thump. "Time to wake up, baka," he said, his tone laced with amusement.

"Ugh." Naruto groaned as he slowly opened his eyes, only to find Raito standing over him with a wide grin on his face. He turned his head to look at the clock on the bedside table. It wasn't even six in the morning yet. "What the hell, Raito?" he grumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"It's already five, and I even gave you an extra hour." Raito said, adding a white lie to his statement. He neatly folded the blanket and tossed it to the end of the bed, his movements quick and efficient just like the SUPER shinobi he was to become.

"Time to get up and start the day," Raito added with his back straight, looking at the window.

"Clean up and meet me in the backyard." Raito said as he turned and began walking towards the door. "We're gonna start training."

Naruto let out a long yawn, his eyes still half-closed. "It's too early," he complained.

Raito paused and let out a small sigh. He quickly recalled Inoichi-sensei's tactics number 5 to deal with laziness and turned around with a small smile on his face, "When are you going to beat Sasuke? When are you going to become a ninja? And, when are you going to become Hokage?" he asked, his tone challenging.

"Ugh," Naruto flinched, his body tensing up at the mention of his goals.

Raito couldn't help but smile at the predictable reaction. 'It's so easy,' he thought to himself, turning around and walking a little faster towards the backyard. He knew just how to motivate Naruto.

A short while later, in the backyard.

"Ow, ow, ow." Naruto groaned as he lay on the ground, his face twisted in pain.

"That's what happens when you don't train." Raito looked over at him, a hint of concern in his eyes.

"It hurts." Naruto complained, his legs spread out in front of him.

Raito stopped stretching and offered some advice. "Rest for a while,"

"You don't have to compete with me, you know. Just focus on improving at your own pace."

"I wasn't." Naruto's breathing was heavy as he spoke. "But, it's fun."

"What?" Raito looked confused.

"Training with someone is really fun," He flashed a big smile at Raito.

Raito rolled his eyes and tossed a water bottle towards Naruto, "Rest, stretch, repeat."

"I'll start making food." Raito said, waving his hand dismissively as he walked back inside the house.

After cleaning up, Raito headed to the kitchen and began his Chakra Control Exercise, the Leaf Spinning Exercise. To his surprise, he found that his chakra control had improved greatly in just 'one night'. He could now easily spin ten leaves at the same time, whereas before he could only manage one.

[Chakra Control (Passive) Lvl 11]

The ability to use chakra more efficiently and more easily.

# Reduces the CP (Chakra Point) cost for using skills.

# Increases total CP, allowing for more chakra-based abilities to be used.

# Enhances chakra manipulation, making it easier to control and shape chakra for various techniques.

[Subset]

[- Leaf Sticking Exercise]

[- Leaf Spinning Exercise]

As Raito manipulated his chakra, he effortlessly swirled a leaf around his arm while adding spices to the vegetables he was cooking. Suddenly, a notification appeared in his mind.

[Skill 'Cooking' leveled up.]

Raito couldn't help but smile at the progress he was making

As he continued to cook, his thoughts turned to the books he had purchased from the foreign merchants. "I brought a lot of books. There should be a few skill books, right?"

"Raito," Naruto called as he walked into the kitchen, covered in sweat and dirt but with a proud smile on his face. "I managed to complete two sets."

Raito looked up from his stir-fry and raised an eyebrow. "Didn't I tell you to clean yourself?" he asked, his tone mildly exasperated, then his eyes returned to the stir fry. "But other than that, good job."

"Yosh," Naruto exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air before dashing off towards the bathroom.

"What the heck was that?"

After turning off the gas and covering the lid of the stir-fry, Raito made his way to the library.

The library was a large room with books lining every wall. In the center of the room sat a plush armchair and a small round table, upon which rested a picture frame of a happy family of three.

As Raito stood by the door, his gaze lingered on the family photo, and a nostalgic smile played on his lips. Then, his eyes drifted to the corner of the room, where a few boxes as tall as half his height sat, sealed and covered in a thick layer of dust.

"Just what was I thinking..." Raito muttered to himself, shaking his head. He took out a rag and wiped the dust off the top of the boxes before carefully opening them.

Continental Language - Picture Book

(For Kids of All Ages, you know!)

Mathematics Level I

(Never Get Cheated Again: A Guide to Basic Math)

Chakra for Dummies

(Learn the Basics of Chakra from a Second-Generation Ninja)

Kamichi's Book of Anatomy

(A Comprehensive Guide from the School of Medical Science)

Basic Stealth Techniques Explained

(Tips and Tricks from a Self-Proclaimed Stealth Master), 'Never got caught stealing panties.')

Sword Cleaning & Maintenance

(The Samurai's Code: Proper Care for Your Blade)

Look Carefully

(The Art of Observation: How to Notice the Details)

How to How - Garden

(Transform Your Backyard: A Guide to Gardening)

100 Ways to Fold a Paper

(The Origami Handbook: Create a World of Paper)

…

"I can't believe I bought one of everything." Raito went through one of the boxes and groaned looking. "I think I even asked Inoichi-sensei for some extra money back then."

Just then, Naruto's shout came from the kitchen. "Raito, where are the plates?"

"Coming," Raito quickly stored all the books back in the box and hurried towards the kitchen. 'I hope he doesn't break any.' he thought to himself with a slight sense of urgency.

Raito walked into the kitchen to find Naruto jumping comically in an attempt to reach the top cupboard. Suppressing a chuckle, Raito pointed to the drying rack and said, "Naruto, the plates and bowls are right there on the rack."

Naruto looked sheepishly at Raito and stammered, "I – I didn't see them…"

Raito shook his head and said, "Don't train until you go stupid." He quickly grabbed the bowls and handed them to Naruto.

As Raito opened the rice cooker, a cloud of steam billowed out, revealing perfectly cooked white rice with shredded seaweed on top. A light drizzle of shrimp oil added a unique and appetizing fragrance to the dish.

Raito carefully removed the cover and handed the container to Naruto, asking him to start plating the rice. Meanwhile, Raito took two plates and opened the grill rack, placing a perfectly grilled fish on each plate.

"Rice, fish and…" Raito filled a bowl with some vegetable soup and placed it on the table. "Stir fry eggplants and potato." he added, serving the final dish.

As Naruto noticed a small pile of leaves on the table, he furrowed his brow in confusion and asked, "Why are those leaves here?"

Raito looked up at Naruto and replied, "Chakra control. Didn't Iruka sensei say we need to be able to stick three leaves at once?"

"He did?" Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly and let out a chuckle. "Oh yeah, I guess I forgot about that."

'I'll have to ask Anko-nee for some help with Naruto's training.' Raito thought to himself with a sly smile. Looking up at Naruto, he asked, "So, were you able to do Shadow clone jutsu?"

Naruto's face lit up with excitement as he shouted, "I did!" and pumped his fist forward.

Raito quickly covered his food and glared at Naruto. "Oi, careful."

"Sorry, sorry." Naruto apologized with a grin, then proceeded to show off his hand sign, "Shadow clone technique was really easy."

"Easy?" Raito looked at him in amazement.

"Yup, it took a little bit more than an hour but I did it." Naruto boasted, as a clone appeared behind him and gave a thumbs up before disappearing.

"Heh, good for ya." Raito said with a teasing smile. "Now, you won't fail the practical test this time."

'He used half of his total chakra to make just one clone?' Raito looked puzzled, but then he noticed the CP bar filling up almost completely as the clone disappeared.

'Naruto has a really large chakra pool.' Raito mused, closing Naruto's status box. He sighed, thinking about the absurd requirements to learn skills as a Gamer, 'Gamer's body, it's not all pros, there are cons too.'

'I need to fulfill those requirements to learn Shadow Clone, whereas Naruto just simply learns it.' Raito thought to himself. 'Even after trying to learn it on my own, I got an alert to meet the requirements first. Otherwise, harmful effects may be seen.'

'Let's ask someone about this technique.' Raito thought to himself.

'Not Mari-nee… I don't want to ask Inoichi-sensei, and definitely not Yūgao-nee.'

"Oi, Raito. Future Hokage to Raito." Naruto called out, waving his hand in front of Raito's face.

Snapping out of his daze, Raito looked at Naruto. "Huh, what?"

"Your food will go cold." Naruto pointed out, looking at the plates and then back at Raito.

"I will, I will," Raito chuckled, trying to shake off his overthinking nature that was causing him to eat poorly.

"You're acting weird," Naruto commented, as he picked up his bowls and plates to leave.

"I am not." Raito defended himself. "I was just thinking about buying some weight." He made a mental note to control himself better in the future and pulled out a notebook from his inventory to show Naruto. But before he could write anything, a notification box appeared in front of him.

[Checklist created]

- Take revenge on the people in the class.

- Raise stats.

- Buy weights.

'Something new again,' Raito murmured to himself as he paused in his tracks and placed the notebook back in his inventory.

"You are doing it again." Naruto said, pulling on Raito's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Sorry, Naruto." Raito apologized, snapping out of his thoughts.

"What's really going on?" Naruto asked, looking at Raito with concern.

"Hm, I think I found something awesome." Raito said with a mysterious smile, making a shushing gesture.

"What is it? What is it?" Naruto asked excitedly, his eyes sparkling with curiosity.

"It's my secret." Raito laughed and continued eating, purposefully ignoring Naruto's questions.

After they finished cleaning the dishes, Raito picked up a book and resumed reading from where he left off.

Ding

Skill Created!

Congratulations! Due to your repeated action of reading, a new skill has been created.

[Reading Lvl 1] has been created.

[Reading Lvl 1 (Passive) Exp 0.0%]

- Reading speed increases by 1%

- Understanding the read content by 10%

[Due to your dedication to studying, your INT has increased by 1. Keep up the good work!]

Furrowing his brows, Raito closed the notification tab and looked at his book collection in the inventory. 'Since INT raises my chakra level, I need to read lots of book.'

'What will happen once I finish all the books in the house? Do I need to go to library?' he wondered.

Naruto grabbed his small backpack and hurried towards the door, but found Raito standing still with a frown on his face. "Raito?" he asked, looking at him with concern.

"Raito, the classes are going to start, hurry, hurry." Naruto exclaimed as he grabbed Raito's hand and started pulling him towards the door.

"We still have plenty of time," Raito replied, glancing at the clock before grabbing his bag.

"To the academy," Naruto shouted loudly, causing a few of Raito's neighbors to peek out of their windows.

Raito playfully hit Naruto on the head and greeted his neighbors with a friendly wave. He then glared at Naruto before activating the seals and mumbling to himself. "I can level up 'Observe' by one or more…"

As Raito was browsing through his skill list, Naruto suddenly grabbed his wrist and took off running.

"Oi, don't drag," Raito quickly adjusted his posture and matched Naruto's pace as he started running alongside him.

Activating his chakra, Raito began channeling it to his back and leg muscles, providing a steady stream of energy. "Jii-chan's book is really useful."

Ding

Skill created

[Congratulations! Due to your repeated action of running, a new skill has been created.]

[Running Lvl 1]

[Running Lvl 1 (Active/Passive) 0.0%]

- Increase running speed by 1%

- Increase stamina by 1%

'Stupid Naruto,' Raito muttered to himself as he closed the notification boxes and tried using 'Observe'. However, he found that it was currently useless.

As they arrived at the academy, Raito saw students from different semesters streaming in with their bags, chatting and laughing among themselves.

Each student had their own strengths and weaknesses, and there was a mix of sturdy, smart, plain, and lanky individuals. Raito reflected on how everyone had their own unique talents, and if they focused on developing those talents, they could achieve great things in the future.

Some students have more disadvantages than others, but that just means they have advantages in other areas. That's why guidance is important. While there are many teachers who recognize this, only a few actually provide the necessary guidance.

"This Academy is such a waste of time." Raito groaned.

Naruto looked at Raito then backed away, waving his hand and saying goodbye.

"That's weird-"

"A waste of time, huh?" Raito heard a male voice behind him and swiftly turned around to see Iruka standing there. He quickly put on a big smile and said, "Good morning, Iruka-sensei."

Iruka's hand shot out and grabbed Raito's ear as he glared at him, "A waste of time, huh?" he repeated, his voice stern.

Releasing Raito's ear, Iruka crossed his arms and said, "Wasting early hours of academy and now talking bad about Academy. You're getting bolder, Raito."

Raito activated his 'Chakra Sense' and Iruka activated his 'Chakra Echolocation', sensing Raito's technique.

Looking down at the floor and keeping his voice low, Raito said, "You know it's true, don't you, sensei?"

"Raito." Iruka said, a defeated look on his face as he listened to his student.

Raito raised his finger and puffed his chest out, confidently stating. "Senju Hashirama, Uchiha Madara, Senju Tobirama. They are the first-tier examples, proving my point that we don't need Academy to become a shinobi-."

"Owowow," Raito winced in pain and glared at Iruka, who had his hands clenched into fists.

"What the heck was that for?" he asked, rubbing his head.

"Get to your class." Iruka said with a smile, waving his hand dismissively, "And continue being on time."

Raito rolled his eyes and walked towards his classroom.

As Raito approached his classroom, he felt a sense of unease wash over him. He, who always took pride in being late to every class by at least half an hour, was now on time. It was a strange feeling, and the hallways looked different than what he was used to.

Usually, the halls were silent, with everyone already inside their classrooms. But now, he could hear the murmur of voices coming from all around him.

Taking a deep breath, Raito listened to the sounds of his classmates chatting and laughing. He patted his chest, trying to calm his nerves. 'I should be fine… probably.' he thought to himself, before sliding the door and stepping inside.

As Raito stepped into the classroom, the previously lively atmosphere suddenly fell silent. Every student turned their heads to stare at him in disbelief.

Raito, notorious for being late to every first class by at least half an hour, had arrived a full 30 minutes early.

"Kami-sama." One of the boys muttered, hastily punching his friend's arm and shouted. "I am not dreaming, am I?"

"No way." Another student whispered in shock.

"Crazy!" A third student chimed in, shaking his head in disbelief.

…

As Raito stood in the classroom, his classmates stared at him in shock, their minds racing with absurd thoughts. Some wondered if the sun had risen from the west, or if Naruto had finally stopped playing pranks. Others thought that birds had started barking and dogs had started flying.

Raito looked around the room, half-expecting to see Mari sitting in her usual spot. He mentally chastised himself for his momentary lapse in judgment, then made his way to his own seat. Looking around, his classmates had dumbfounded expressions plastered on their faces.

'If I knew that this would happen, I would have just left.' Raito thought to himself with a wry smile

"Morning, Raito-san."

"Morning, Raito-kun."

Came two familiar voices from behind his seat

Raito turned around to see Iwasawa and Renji, both of whom were known for being punctual and diligent students.

"Good morning, Iwasawa-san, Renji-san." he replied with a smile. "Someone dragged me here today. So, it couldn't be helped."

Iwasawa looked up from her book and gave him a warm smile. "We understand, Raito-san." she said, before returning to her reading.

"I could never do the same as you, Raito-san." Renji sighed, shaking his head. "My training as a samurai requires strict discipline and punctuality."

Iwasawa looked up from her book and raised an eyebrow. "It's not your training that stops you, Renji. It's your cowardice."

Renji's face flushed with embarrassment. "T-that's not true." he stammered, clenching his fists.

Raito watched the exchange with a twitch in his cheek. 'Two unlucky people.' he thought to himself, shaking his head.

'[Observe]'

Name: Masami Iwasawa

Level: 7

Title: Ninja Academy Student (+25% Exp till level 10)

Age: 12

HP: 750

CP: 500

STR: 14

VIT: 18

DEX: 21

INT: 20

WIS: 16

LUK: 19

Masami clan !$&member: Higher affinity !$&towards poison techniques.

Beginner !$&poison body: Immune to simple poisons, additional 100 !$&HP per level.

!$&Masami Iwasawa is a $#member of the Masami clan in the Konohagakure no Sato. She is a genius in poison techniques and is known to have activated her poison body.

Name: Abarai Renji

Level 7

Title: Ninja Academy Student (+25% Exp till level 10)

Age: 12

HP: 700

CP: 350

STR: 23

VIT: 28

DEX: 29

INT: 20

WIS: 23

LUK: 16

Abarai household member: Higher affinity towards Kenjutsu, additional DEX+1 and VIT+1 per level

Beginner sword apprentice: 40% learning speed while learning Kenjutsu

Abarai Renji is a member of the Abarai family, originating from the Land of Iron. He is a sword lover and excels at his family's swordplay. He plans to return to the Land of Iron to further develop his sword techniques.

'Renji only uses Kenjutsu, even forgoing Taijutsu. The rumors must be true, he's planning to go to the Land of Iron after this academic year ends.'

'Iwasawa, I don't know much about her, but it seems that her clan really focuses on poisons.'

Raito sighed and shook his head. "How unlucky." he muttered to himself, before taking out a book from his inventory.

Iwasawa's eyes immediately caught sight of the book, and she leaned over to peek at it. "Eh, Raito-san, what book is that?" she asked, her curiosity piqued.

"This book?" Raito glanced at the 'Poison Lore' before answering, "Although the title looks like that, it only contains basic information on poisonous plants and animals."

"Can I-" Iwasawa's eyes lit up with interest, but before she could ask to borrow it, the sound of a door sliding open and knocking against the wall echoed through the room.

Slide, Thud!

A fat boy with narrow eyes, wearing expensive-looking clothing entered the classroom.

"Raito, care to explain to the class, why you were coming to the academy with Naruto?" The fat boy, followed by a couple of other boys, walked in with a confident stride. Standing tall in front of Raito's table, he looked at Raito with anger in his eyes, "I saw you two." he added.

Raito glanced up at the boy and quickly checked his stats before returning his gaze to his book.

[Shimada Tomio Lvl 5 (Academy Student)]

Tomio looked at Raito with anger, "You… you don't understand. He is bad news."

"Says who?" Raito said nonchalantly, not bothering to look up from his book.

"Says everyone," Tomio raised his voice in anger, causing everyone in the class to turn their heads towards him. "No one here wants to be friends with Naruto."

Raito rolled his eyes. 'Seriously,'

"Naruto again?" one student muttered.

"Even when he isn't here, he is still causing trouble," another added.

"No one? What about me?" Raito closed his book and pointed to himself. "I want to be his friend."

"Be good and…" Raito's voice was interrupted by Tomio's shout.

Tomio pointed his finger at Raito and shouted, "You… oi, listen now, I'm giving you a chance-"

"Why?" Raito interrupted, tapping his finger on the wooden table.

"Because he is-"

"Why should l listen to you?" Raito banged his fist on the table and stood up, towering over Tomio.

Tomio's face turned red with anger, but Raito simply waved him off. "Go away, fatty." he said dismissively, sitting back down and picking up his book.

Tomio's face twisted in anger as he stuttered, "Y-you should be grateful."

Raito looked at Tomio as if he was an idiot and said "What? I should be grateful?"

They had attracted crowd's attention and Raito wasn't giving Tomio any attention.

Tomio looked around as all eyes were on him. He took several quick breaths, and said. "I know you are living with Naruto."

Suddenly, many of the students started murmuring, questioning Raito's action.

Raito swept his gaze over everyone questioning him with a quick use of '[Observe]' and said. "So what? He is just Naruto."

"Don't you know…" Tomio's smile grew wider as he continued, "Naruto is the Kyūbi reincarnate."

"Naruto is the demon?" one student asked in disbelief.

"I knew it." Another student shouted.

Raito looked at Tomio and laughed loudly, wiping tears from the corners of his eyes, "Naruto is the Kyūbi reincarnate. How stupid can you be?" the mocking smile hung on his face.

Tomio's face turned red with anger. "I am serious." he emphasized, "Naruto is the Kyūbi reincarnate."

While murmuring was going on, Raito let out a loud cough, attracting everyone's attention.

"Do you take me as a fool?" Raito shouted, looking around at everyone before spreading his hands out to indicate the entire room, "Are you taking everyone here for fools?"

With everyone's attention now focused on him, Raito continued, "A capable shinobi must always verify information to safeguard against fraud, lies, and deceit."

Iwasawa snapped closed her book, creating a loud sound. "If one blindly follows information without any verification, they are essentially forfeiting their life to that information. An action truly of a fool."

Raito turned back to look at Iwasawa, then back to Tomio with a smile, "Hear that? You need to verify your information before you force us all to believe that… lie."

Feeling the weight of everyone's gaze, Tomio nervously defended his statement. "I am not lying. My father told me about it."

Raito raised an eyebrow, questioning, "And how did your father come to know about this?"

Tomio hesitated for a moment, searching for an answer, "A friend of my father said it."

Raito drew out his response, "Oh, I see. So, your father verified from A-kun, who verified from B-kun, who verified from C-kun and I'm guessing there are probably some D-kun, E-kun, F-kun, and so on, right?"

Renji turned to Tomio with a puzzled expression, questioning, "But didn't the Fourth Hokage-sama already kill the Kyūbi?"

The students in the class began to murmur amongst themselves, exchanging glances and starting their own discussions.

A student whispered, "He's doubting Hokage-sama."

Another student chimed in, "Fourth Hokage-sama sacrificed himself to kill the demon and now Tomio is questioning it…"

Tomio looked around anxiously, trying to defend himself, "I didn't mean it like that…"

A girl slammed her fist on her desk in anger, glaring at Tomio, "So, what are you saying? Speak clearly, you stupid fatty."

Other students joined in, voicing their disapproval and frustration. "Yeah, don't think we're stupid."

"Have some respect for the Hokage-sama."

Tomio was deep in thought, searching for a way to prove his claim. Suddenly, he looked up and declared, "If you don't believe me, I'll prove it."

"And how do you plan on doing that?" One of the girls questioned.

Tomio smirked, confident that he had found a solid argument. "Naruto, he was born on the day Kyūbi died."

One of the boys leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand. "And? What's your point?" he asked, challenging Tomio to connect the dots.

"Kyūbi died and Naruto was born. It's simple as that." Tomio shouted, his eyes moistening. "Kyūbi turned into Naruto. What's there not to understand?"

One of the boys knocked on his desk, shaking his head. "You don't make sense man." He raised his index finger and questioned, "How do you know that Naruto was the only one born that day? There could have been many other babies born in the village."

"Did you investigate? Did you look at the hospital records? Did you ask the medic nins?"

The boy raised a second finger and continued, "Why did Kyūbi choose Naruto? Did Kyūbi died super close to where Naruto was born or something like that?" His tone was skeptical, challenging Tomio's argument

Raising his third finger, the boy looked around cautiously and asked, "Why do you keep saying it's Naruto? Did he do something to you?"

[Mihashi Futoshi Lvl 6]

Another boy chimed in, "Yea, why choose Naruto? He is so dumb."

A third student spoke up, "Actually, I know someone else who was born on the same day as Naruto."

Another student added, "I also know a kid born on that day, but he goes to school and everything."

"Hey, he is twelve and you are calling him a kid. Doesn't that mean you are a kid too?"

The other student retorted, "You are a kid too."

While everyone was beginning to voice their opinions, Raito clapped his hands together and spoke up with a wide grin. "I remember something…"

Renji leaned over to Iwasawa and whispered, "Iwasawa, don't you think Raito looks a bit creepier, right now?"

"He does," Iwasawa nodded in agreement as she closed her personal book and pulled out the Academy's history textbook. "The class is about to start. Did you read?"

"Ugh," Renji groaned as he looked at the history book and then looked sideways. "I totally forgot about it."

Raito pinched his chin, narrowed his eyes, and furrowed his brow, "It was about two months ago, after Sasuke caught you peeking into girl's changing room. He beat the shit out of you."

"He peeked!? Two months ago?" The girls in the room suddenly stood up and glared at Tomio with anger in their eyes.

"And Sasuke-kun beat him for us." Another girl let out a squeal of delight.

The other girls nodded in agreement, murmuring, "For us."

"I knew something was off that day." One of the girls stepped forward, holding a thick book in her hand. "I just had a feeling something was wrong. And I was right."

Raito cleared his throat lightly and added, "Tomio even wanted to prank Sasuke by throwing stink bomb at him."

Tomio raised his hands defensively and pointed at Raito, "That's a lie! Everything you're saying is a lie. I never peeked into the girls' changing room."

"That's why you went to the infirmary that day, two months ago." One of the girls whispered, but her words were loud enough for everyone to hear.

Raito cleared his throat again, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "Naruto and Sasuke found about your prank that day and tried confronting you, but you threw the stink bomb at them."

He continued, "I remember that they both had to skip their classes that day because of it.."

One of Sasuke's fan girls opened a thick, pink notebook and flipped to a specific page. She adjusted her glasses and looked up at Tomio, her voice steady and confident. "What Raito-kun said is true. Sasuke-kun did indeed took a leave after lunch that day."

The two students standing behind Tomio quickly caught on to what Raito was implying and stepped forward to defend him.

Just as one of them was about to speak up, everything around him seemed to slow down. The voices around him became distorted, stretching out as if time itself was being manipulated.

"But what will you say?"

The first student hesitated, his mind suddenly filled with uncertainty.

'Yeah, what will I say?' He thought, the question echoing in his mind like a mantra.

"You were with him, weren't you?" The whispers were like angel's touch, comforting him, guiding him. "If you two were all together then…"

'Yeah, there's no way he would have done it. We were all together.'

The dazed student slowly opened his mouth to speak, but before he could utter a word, that soothing voice spoke once again.

"It was on the fourteenth."

Without hesitation, the student repeated the words, "On the fourteenth, I was with Tomio the whole day. There's no way he could have done it." He didn't even realize what he was saying.

The boy standing next to Tomio quickly agreed with him, nodding his head vigorously. "That's right. We were together on fourteenth."

However, the girl with glasses looked at them skeptically, adjusting her frames as she spoke, "You say that, but… when did I ever say it was fourteenth?"

Her statement caused an uproar in the class, and some of the girls started attacking Tomio and his two friends.

A small number of boys and girls ran towards the teacher's lounge to find Mari, leaving the victims of the attack to suffer even further.

"Raito-san," Iwasawa began organizing her notes before speaking, "You're not necessarily a bad person."

She paused for a moment before adding, "Even when you give half-truth."

Renji was about to chime in, but before he could say anything, he felt a hand covering his mouth.

"Please stay quiet for now." Raito whispered with a smile.

Mari walked into the classroom wearing a Chūnin vest and carrying a register in her hand. Three boys were following behind her, and a girl was beside her, explaining the details of the situation.

"After that, the girls started hitting them. I tried to stop it, but…" the girl trailed off.

"I understand," Mari sighed as she entered the classroom.

Just before she walked in, the students had already retreated to their proper seats and opened their textbooks, looking like diligent students.

Mari could feel her face twitching as she saw her students 'studying'.

'These brats.' she thought to herself

Her gaze then shifted to Raito, who was sitting there reading a small book, looking as irritating as ever.

'King of brats, wearing proper clothes.' she thought with a hint of annoyance.

"Tomio, Shogo, Heikichi." Mari called out the names of the three students who were the main culprits and said, "To my office, now."

She then looked at the rest of the class and said, "Copy the first chapter on Theory on Chakra Manipulation and submit it to me before noon."

Mari walked out with the three students and closed the door after giving a glare at Raito.

Raito looked at the logs and thought for a while, 'Repeated actions and special actions. Let's try this.'

"Three pages of Theory on Chakra Manipulation? And there aren't even any pictures." One of the girls groaned, slumping down in her seat.

Raito had already begun copying the chapter, writing word for word at a rapid pace.

Poke, poke.

Raito turned around to find Iwasawa pushing her notebook towards him.

"What do you want?" Raito asked, eyeing Iwasawa warily.

"You created this mess. So, you will do it." Iwasawa as straightforward as ever.

She pushed her notebook towards Raito and grabbed the book he was reading earlier, starting to read it herself. Strangely, no one else in the room seemed to hear her voice, except for Renji, who had already started writing.

Raito turned around and began writing as well, maintaining a steady speed and clarity. As he wrote, a notification appeared in his mind.

[Skill 'Calligraphy' has leveled up.]

'It's really useful.' Raito thought to himself as he closed the notebook. After timing his writing speed, he found that it had clearly increased, while his clarity remained the same as before.

Just as he was about to return the notebook to Iwasawa, she spoke up, "When others didn't even finish once, you finished twice the original work. Do you perhaps want to be a writer, Raito-san?"

Raito looked at her in surprise. "Writer? Write a book?" He paused for a moment before continuing. "I don't know about being a writer, but I want to take the Fūinjutsu course in the future. That's why I'm training in calligraphy. Speed and clarity are the most important in Fūinjutsu, after all."

Iwasawa raised an eyebrow. "Fūinjutsu?" she repeated, sounding interested.

"Difficult, but looking at you, it seems doable." Iwasawa said, grabbing her notebook. "Good job."

After some time, everyone had finished copying the chapter. The class representative collected everyone's notebook and placed it in front of Raito.

"Yuuki isn't here." The class representative noted, grabbing a few of the notebooks from the top of the pile before walking away.

"Seriously?" Raito's face twitched as he grabbed the remaining notebooks and followed the class representative.

"Naruto and Sasuke were absent that day because they were in a fight, outside school premises." the class representative explained

"You knew about it?" Raito asked, looking at the not-so-normal class representative.

"Mm, it was my turn to skip school that day." Class rep confessed with a shrug.

"Heh, I didn't know that class rep was so daring." Raito teased. "Wanna skip classes with me."

"Not daring as you, Raito-san, and no, I don't want to." She then added. "To follow someone as you would be something like… going for a sure death mission."

As they walked into the teacher's lounge, Raito saw Mari sitting on the couch, drinking tea, and reading a romance novel. "Wait, class rep."

'It would be really troublesome if we see her now.' he thought to himself, quickly coming up with a plan.

Balancing the notebooks on one hand, Raito blocked the class representative's view, knocked on the door, and called out, "Mari-sensei, the assignments you have given are complete. Please check."

Raito walked in to see that Mari had quickly hidden the novel behind her. A smile appeared on his face as he said, "Saw that," before standing on attention.

Mari gave Raito a glare before turning her attention to the beautiful class representative "Class rep." she said, acknowledging her presence.

"Hai, Mari-sensei." The class representative replied with a bow

Mari took out a notepad from the table and began, "You had the second-best scores in the class and third in the semester. While your focuses are on math, science, and chakra theory, which is great, I would like to remind you to invest yourself in other subjects too."

She continued, "After you leave the academy, you are not going to get the chance to cover those bases because you will be so much invested in your own field. I hope you understand some of it and take this message as a good one."

"Take the class to the obstacle course at 11." Mari added before dismissing the class representative with a nod.

"Hai, Mari-sensei." Class rep bowed and left the room, leaving Raito alone with Mari and some other teachers of the academy.

"So?" Mari returned to her lazy self as she sipped her tea, looking at Raito with a curious expression.

"You simply told her to study more, not to waste time on useless things, and... try to beat Sasuke and Sakura to get that cherished first place." Raito said as he grabbed the notebook Mari was holding and tossed it to the side. The pages were blank, but the data were real.

Raito looked the teacher's room, which was suddenly empty for odd reason, and started, "Tomio's reasoning was flawed. There was nothing backing to what he said. It was something like he was forced to know that it was a fact like sun comes from the east and disappears on west."

"What do you think about what he said?" Mari asked.

"I have my own assumptions about it," Raito answered looking at the screen, which was invisible to others.

Mari felt a headache coming on. Just because of some assumptions previously, they had to do some extra work. If Raito started on those assumptions again, it would be a disaster. "Assumptions? Don't go on-"

"I know, I know." Raito waved his hand and sat on the couch. Extending his hand between the cushions, he found the novel and read the title out loud. "A Night at the Winter Castle."

"An adult series," Raito said softly, looking at Mari, who was frozen in time. He returned the book to her and shook his head in disappointment. "I was expecting better."

With a sigh, Raito left the room, leaving Mari alone with her thoughts

Moments later, she started shouting, "That brat" and "Acting like an adult even when he's not."

[Uzumaki Naruto Lvl 8]

[Jinchūriki of Kyūbi]

While walking down the hall, a notification box popped up in front of Raito.

'Jinchūriki? What's that?' Raito clicked on the highlighted text and waited.

[Jinchūriki – Power of Human Sacrifice]

Humans that have tailed beasts sealed within them.

11 AM

'Should I ask Jii-chan about Jinchūriki? No, this is a much bigger thing.'

'He will ask where I found about it.'

'I can't say that I got it from a box, which only I can see, right?'

'But it says 'sealed'. Someone must have used Fūinjutsu? But isn't Kyūbi supposed to be dead? And isn't it supposed to be as big as the Hokage monument? Why is it inside Naruto, when he is so small?'

'Maybe Naruto is really a demon who ate Kyūbi.'

Raito imagined Naruto with two demon horn, black feathery wings, and balls of purple fires hovering around him. His jagged teeth chomping on Kyūbi.

"Everyone to the obstacle course. Iruka sensei would be leading today." Class rep announced, snapping Raito out of his thoughts. He joined the crowd of students making their way towards the training grounds.

Raito closed his 'Chakra Sense' as the information he was getting and the thoughts on Jinchūriki kept bombarding, giving him headache.

He decided to focus on the training and think about Jinchūriki later.

"I hate this." Raito muttered under his breath as he stepped forward.

Just as he was about to make a turn, he noticed someone else stepping in. Both of them quickly adjusted their movements, making a half-turn and stabilizing themselves to avoid colliding into each other.

Raito looked at the person he had almost collided with and recognized him immediately. "Sasuke," He said.

"… Raito." Sasuke acknowledged with a nod. However, before Raito could walk past, Sasuke stopped him and said, "You missed last week."

"I was busy… with some personal stuff." Raito answered, then added, "I will try to come this week."

Raito mentally chastised himself and activated his, "[Chakra Sense]". However difficult it was, he shouldn't have canceled it.

"Bad Luck."

*ding

Skill 'Chakra Sense' has leveled up.

[Chakra Sense Lvl 15]

The ability to sense the chakra outside the body.

# Area Sense

# Chakra Signature Sensing

# Amplification

# Remote Viewing

"Remote viewing, huh?" Raito closed the tab and looked in front to see an ANBU member standing before him, holding a scroll in her hand.

"Hokage-sama's order," ANBU member handed over the scroll. "He wanted to say that he hasn't forgotten."

'ANBU appearing in the academy, that's new.' Raito thought as he unrolled the scroll and quickly scanned its contents. 'A storage seal?'

He stepped into the bathroom and unlocked the seal, revealing a weighty book now resting on his lap.

'What could this be?' Raito wondered, and just as he was about to open the book. He used [Observe] and a new box appeared in front.

[Principles of Fūinjutsu] (Rare)

Author – Generation of Uzumaki and Konoha in Konohagakure

Owner – Yoshizawa Raito

'It's not a skill book.' Raito realized as he flipped through a few pages. He noticed that many sentences had a cross mark next to them.. Every numbered sentence was followed by a bunch of process explaining the experiment and their results. 'It's like an experiment book or something.'

Individual character seals can create an effect. [X]

A sequence of individual character seals creates an effect. [X]

A sequence of related character seals creates an effect. [X]

A sequence of related character seals combined with the user's thoughts creates an effect. [V] [Partial] [Someone with a clear image can make better seals.]

A sequence of related character seals combined with the user's mental image creates an effect. [V] [Partial] [A mental image can direct the chakra flow along a specific pathway.]

A sequence of related character seals combined with a clear mental image, in the form of chakra, creates an effect. [V] [Partial] [Yin chakra cannot be sustained independently.]

Dividing the seal into two parts; the yin chakra with a clear mental image, and the yang chakra forming a foundation to support the mental image, results in an effect. [X]

The yang chakra forms a foundation to support the mental image, while the yin chakra with a clear mental image provides a clear direction for the technique's usage. [X]

The yin and yang chakras of a jutsu, which is just about to be released, is redirected and combined. [X]

The yin and yang are combined into a group of relatable character seals. [V] [Partial]

…

The experiments were almost endless. The book was divided into many parts, showing the variety of works put into it by various people. Occasionally, blood splatters stained the pages, serving as grim reminders of the potential dangers involved in those experiments.

[WIS +1.]

Raito exhaled slowly as he carefully placed the book into his inventory. He cupped his hand under his chin and furrowed his brow. 'Why am I reading such a valuable book in the bathroom?'

'And isn't this a bit too important to just give away?'

'But is it alright?' A question popped into Raito's head as he walked towards the door of the restroom. "I should ask Jii-chan."

Naruto's voice eventually echoed through the hallway, reaching Raito. "Raito, Raito."

"Maybe another time," Raito sighed, pushing the thought aside as he headed towards Naruto. "What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you. Iruka-sensei said that if you were late, he was going to punish you. So, I came to find you." Naruto explained, tugging Raito towards the training grounds.

"Don't worry about it." Raito freed his hand and then placed it on Naruto's shoulder as they walked together.

At the training grounds, Iruka stood with a pen and clipboard in hand, calling out names.

"UZUMAKI NARUTO," Iruka called, his voice growing slightly irritated as he raised his volume.

Two boys casually entered the training grounds.

Seeing the trouble beside Naruto, Iruka sighed as he asked, "Naruto, where have you been?"

"I was—" Naruto began to explain, but Raito quickly interrupted him.

"I am sorry, Iruka-sensei. We were helping Mari-sensei. She can confirm that." Raito lied as he walked towards Shikamaru and Chōji.

"Just get it done. You two are the only ones remaining." Iruka said as Naruto stepped forward. He checked the box on his clipboard and held up the stopwatch. "Ready?"

"Go." Iruka pressed the switch and watched Naruto start running.

As Naruto crossed the finish line, Iruka pressed the stopwatch's switch and announce, "One minute and three seconds."

"Sixth in the grade," Iruka added, noticing Naruto's beaming face. "You did great Naruto."

"Next up, Yoshizawa Raito."

Raito was already standing beside Naruto, examining the course. He adjusted some of the paths from the usual route, mentally preparing himself for the challenge.

"Ready? Go!" Iruka called out.

Raito sprinted down the straight path, stepped over a log, jumped over another, leaped through hoops, scaled the net, jumped down from the top, and balanced himself while running along the log.

"Done," Raito declared, catching his breath.

"Time," Iruka looked at his stopwatch in disbelief and announced, "… 40.33 seconds."

"First in grade," he added, impressed.

Raito exhaled as he glanced back at the obstacle course. 'It was suddenly much easier than I remember.'

Observing his rising DEX and WIS stats, Raito became a believer in numbers. 'I should go there and test my skills, my stats, and everything.'

Iruka playfully flicked Raito's forehead and asked. "Raito, did you just hear what I said?"

Raito responded absentmindedly, "I was just thinking I can do a lot of things, become even-"

Noticing Iruka's smile, Raito scratched the back of his head and apologized, "Sorry about that, sensei."

Iruka slowly shook his head while the smile on his face never left. "You're doing great. I expect you to keep improving."

"Hai," Raito returned to the group and glanced at Sasuke.

Sasuke was glaring back at Raito, but he chose to ignore it.

"Sasuke-kun still has the top score in shuriken and kunai throwing." one of his fan girls remarked.

"Yeah, Sasuke-kun has the perfect score." another student added.

Iruka jotted down a few comments on the paper, then cleared his throat to grab everyone's attention. "Since we're running a bit late, we'll have shuriken and kunai throwing, and sparring after the lunch break."

"Dismissed."

"Shikamaru, Chōji, let's go," Naruto called out to the duo, pointing towards a tree.

Shikamaru glared at Naruto and Raito as he walked over to them.

"Hey, Shikamaru, what's up?" Naruto asked cheerfully.

"Because of you two, my mom made me train a lot harder than usual. Seriously, you two… it was so troublesome." Shikamaru grumbled for a moment before joining the rest of the group.

"Not me," Raito made an offhanded comment, which only earned him another glare from Shikamaru.

"Your mom is super awesome, Shikamaru. I think my Taijutsu improved a lot because of her training in just one day." Naruto said, flexing his non-existent biceps.

Under a beautiful tree, Naruto and Shikamaru sat while Chōji and Raito stood facing each other.

"Raito,"

"Chōji,"

Chōji assumed a battle position with his legs wide and slightly bent, his left leg a little bit forward, and one hand reaching back towards his bag.

Raito also took a battle position, his legs wide and only slightly bent, as his hand went inside an empty bag. He opened his inventory and said, "Today, I have..."

"EGGS FRIED WRAPPED IN BACON"

"CURRY"

After a brief moment of silence, Chōji exploded with excitement and a little bit of disbelief.

"Curry!?"

Raito puffed up his chest and raised his fingers, "Not just any curry, but still warm and hot curry, and of course, there's rice."

Chōji's eyes shone with desire as he dashed forward, grabbing Raito's box and feeling its warmth.

"Whoa, it's real." Chōji took a few sniffs and even held it to his chest, cherishing the warmth.

Shikamaru looked at the bag Raito was holding and asked, "How did you manage that?"

"It's a secret family Ninjutsu," Raito replied with a smug expression.

"Family Ninjutsu?" Their faces showed a mix of excitement and amazement as they looked at Raito.

"Just when did you learn it, Raito?" Naruto asked as he looked at Raito in confusion.

"Last night. When you learned the 'Clone' technique, I learned this secret technique."

"Does it have a name?" Naruto asked, his voice brimming with excitement.

"Of course, it's called [Inventory]." Raito revealed, "I can keep anything that I touch in the [Inventory]. When I take out the things from inventory, it's like they were just placed in there." Raito made wild gestures as he explained.

"A space-type Ninjutsu?" Shikamaru pinched his chin, deep in thought. 'Summoning techniques, Fūinjutsu, Flying Thunder God.'

Looking at Raito, Shikamaru continued, "It's more like a storage seal-"

"But better," Raito interrupted Shikamaru, narrowing his eyes.

Shikamaru stretched his hands and started, "Even though it resembles a storage seal, it isn't. Time passes normally in the storage seal whereas yours does not. So, it's a bit different, otherwise, the functions are the same."

Raito made an annoyed expression as he thought, 'I need to research on my powers.'

"Eh, wait a second." Chōji interrupted Raito and Shikamaru, pointing at Naruto, "Naruto can finally make a clone?"

"It is called the [Shadow Clone] and is far better than [Clone]. Do you guys wanna see?" Naruto asked excitedly, revealing the secret technique.

Chōji nodded.

Raito sighed. He could only shake his head.

Naruto quickly went through a series of hand seals, focusing his chakra. "Shadow Clone Technique!"

With a puff of smoke, two Narutos appeared, both waving towards the group.

Shikamaru examined the clones and said, "These aren't your simple clone technique,"

Chōji poked the two Narutos and declared, "This is not a clone technique at all."

"Because it's a Shadow Clone, not just a regular clone." Shikamaru explained, examining the clone. He added, "This technique was used for infiltration and information gathering, created by the Second Hokage."

Naruto scratched his cheeks sheepishly and grinned. "This is a bit high-level, isn't it?"

'I wanna try it too… I'm being jealous.' Raito scolded himself in his thoughts and listened carefully.

"Naruto, did you know? A newly made civilian Chūnin could never use Shadow Clone technique."

"What? Why?" Naruto asked, surprised.

"It's not like they cannot learn the technique, but when making a Shadow Clone, your chakra is immediately halved." Shikamaru explained.

"Isn't that really bad?" Chōji asked, looking at Naruto, while Raito focused his gaze on Shikamaru.

"But dispelling the technique will return the chakra," Shikamaru added after some time.

'Just say it all at once,' Raito glared at Shikamaru.

"But how does it help in information gathering?" Raito asked, looking at Naruto.

"Heh, when you dispel the technique, along with the chakra, you'll also gain the memories of your clones," Shikamaru explained.

"That's so cool," Naruto's eyes sparkled with excitement as he looked at his clone.

Shikamaru glanced sideways and added, "When I say memories, I mean everything. You will get memories of what you see, hear, taste, and feel. But at the same time you will also feel pain, fatigue, and exhaustion that your clone has gone through."

"Is that so?" Naruto pouted and began to ponder.

"Exhaustion is one issue, but taking in all those memories is the main problem, as it creates your brain to go boom." Shikamaru concluded with tapping his head, looking at Naruto, who was deep in thought.

"Nah," Naruto looked up and said, "That doesn't happen at all."

The clone disappeared as Naruto sat, "I played with it all night yesterday, and nothing like that happened."

"Huh?" Shikamaru looked confused as he asked, "Did you get memories from your clones?"

"I don't know. I don't remember." Naruto answered after thinking for a moment.

"Is this even the Shadow Clone technique?" Shikamaru exhaled loudly.

"Let's do an experiment, right here and now," Raito spoke up. His gamer powers indicated that it was indeed a skill book for the Shadow Clone technique, and the requirement was also very high. "Let's see if this is really the Shadow Clone technique that you know of, Shikamaru."

'I know that the book that was given to me is a Shadow Clone technique skill book because Jii-chan and others told me about it beforehand. But what Naruto says doesn't match what Shikamaru is saying, and he probably has already seen his clan members performing the skill or read the real Shadow Clone technique of Konoha.'

'Maybe, the technique that Naruto is using can be some upgraded version of academy clone technique or the downgraded version of Shadow Clone technique if that is possible. If I start thinking like this…'

Raito sighed as he asked Naruto to create two clones. Shikamaru and Raito, and the two clones paired; one of the clone went with Raito and other with Shikamaru in the opposite direction, towards the bushes, leaving the original behind alone.

"Remember the word 'Cloud'," Shikamaru instructed before turning around.

Raito picked up a stone from the ground and asked, "What is this?"

The clone looked amused as he answered, "Stone."

Once they regrouped, Naruto and Shikamaru sat in front of the original Naruto, who was now sitting with his two clones.

"So, what now?" Naruto looked at his two clones, who also looked back at him questioningly.

"Tell them to go back." Shikamaru facepalmed.

Puff, puff.

The two clones disappeared in a cloud of chakra smoke, and Raito saw the CP bar filling back to 1/8th of his total CP.

"Naruto, what did I say?" Shikamaru asked.

"And what did I show you?" Raito asked.

Raito and Shikamaru looked at Naruto with excitement for different reasons.

Naruto blinked his eyes several times before answering, "Shikamaru said 'Cloud', and Raito showed me a 'Stone'."

"Yeah," Raito high-five Shikamaru with a big smile on his face.

Except for the two plus Chōji, there was another person near who was happy about Naruto's success in making a Shadow Clone.

"Chōji, attack." Raito jumped back and turned midway, "You're not going anywhere, Hinata."

"Eep!" Letting out a strange sound, Hinata dodged Chōji and Raito's combined attack.

"Hinata?" Naruto looked at Hinata and called her out.

"Na, Naruto-kun," A girl with featureless lavender eyes and short dark blue hair emerged from the bushes, clutching a large bag in her hand.

"I-I di-didn't mean to." She bowed hurriedly, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"Hinata, wanna join us?" Naruto suddenly suggested, causing everyone else to stare at him.

"Th-that's actually a good idea." Raito tried to sound nonchalant, but his mind was racing. 'When did Naruto become so considerate?'

"I don't care anymore," Shikamaru sighed, sprawling out on the ground and gazing up at the sky.

"I wanna eat already," Chōji complained, walking over to sit beside Shikamaru.

"Hinata-san, what are you doing here? Were you looking for someone?" Raito asked as he sat down on the ground and began unpacking his bento.

"Give it a break, let's eat." Shikamaru said, playfully punching Raito on the arm and turning to look at Hinata. "Um, join us."

"I-I made some e-extra food today, so I-I thought I would share it with everyone," Hinata stuttered nervously as Naruto sat down beside her and patted the ground.

"Great, let's all share." Chōji said, breaking his chopsticks and opening his bento.

"Sure, here is my curry special." Raito said, pushing his bento forward and offering a few spoons.

"Eggs and bacon here." Chōji said, expertly cutting his food with his chopsticks and pushing it forward.

"Um, I made a lot of different things here." Hinata said, blushing as she opened her two-layered bento. The array of food inside was so impressive that it momentarily blinded everyone with its deliciousness..

There was rice, tempura shrimp, fried chicken, meatballs, raw vegetables and fruits, and greens. It was more than enough food to feed everyone there, even with Chōji present.

"Whoa, there's so much food." Chōji exclaimed, eyeing the variety hungrily.

"Itadakimasu!" {Japanese phrase said before starting a meal, expressing gratitude for the food and giving thanks to those who prepared it. It's a sign of respect and appreciation for the meal that is about to be enjoyed.}

"Let's dig in." Naruto said, after everyone gave a small prayer of thanks.

"Hinata-san, you should eat quickly," Raito advised, noticing her hesitation.

With that said, everyone started eating faster because Chōji would eat as much as everyone combined and as fast as everyone combined.

Patting his bulging stomach, Naruto let out a satisfied burp. "Ah, I'm really full."

"Hinata's cooking is much better than yours, Raito." Chōji looked at Raito and commented.

Raito nodded in agreement, adding sagely, "Of course it is. She made it with love after all."

Hinata blushed hearing the comments. "T-Thank you for the p-praise." she stammered.

Chōji shifted his eyes craftily, "Hinata, why don't you join us at lunch from now on?"

"I would love to," Hinata answered quickly, as if her life depended on it.

"We get to eat more delicious food made by the Hinata. Awesome," Naruto gave his trademark smile to Hinata.

Hinata blushed while Shikamaru just shook his head, amused.

Chōji and Shikamaru lay on the ground, gazing up at the clouds. Raito and Naruto followed suit, while Hinata remained sitting.

"Hinata, come, lie down here" Naruto patted the space beside him and said, thinking that no one else was going to invite her.

Hinata did as she was told and lay down on the ground, looking up at the sky and clouds.

"The clouds looked so uncaring and free. I wish my life was like that." Shikamaru sighed wistfully, closing his eyes.

"Like your mom would ever let that happen." Raito broke his dream and added, "I'm guessing she'll be ready to train you the moment you walk in the door."

Shikamaru let out a frustrated "Tch" at the reminder of his overbearing mother.

After a while, when everything was calm, Raito spoke up. "Wanna skip with me? I really don't want to go."

"Huh? But, I wanted to show a cool move I learned yesterday. I practiced the whole night with my clones for it." Naruto wined

Raito sighed, "I just don't want to fight Sakura."

"You're sparring with Sakura?" Chōji turned to look at Raito. "Oh."

"You didn't go there today, did you?" Shikamaru turned to faced Raito.

Raito hesitated before finally admitting. "…Yeah"

Hinata felt more and more confused hearing their conversation, "Um, what is going on?"

Shikamaru was the first to rat him out, "Every time he doesn't go to his lucky place, he gets to fight Sakura."

"Isn't that just coincidence?" Hinata asked.

"It happened seven times in a row when Iruka-sensei was Raito's homeroom teacher." Chōji raised his hand towards the sky as he answered.

"I really happen," Naruto added.

"Anyway, let's go," Shikamaru stood up and dusted off his pants.

At the training grounds,

Naruto improved his ranking in kunai and shuriken throwing, and Raito topped the ranks alongside Sasuke in the first place.

The girls were a bit noisy, but things settled down when Iruka-sensei shouted for their attention.

Iruka looked at everyone and said, "Everyone line up. We'll have three platforms and three pairings, then we'll switch. Understand?"

"This is just a sparring match. So, remember, no Ninjutsu, no weapons. You can only do Taijutsu."

Haruno Sakura vs. Yoshizawa Raito

Uchiha Sasuke vs. Akimichi Chōji

Uzumaki Naruto vs. Masami Iwasawa

Raito sighed while Shikamaru chuckled.

"Naruto, show them." Raito said, patting Naruto's shoulder before walking onto the stage.

"[Observe]" Raito murmured, looking at Sakura.

Name: Haruno Sakura

Level: 5

Title: Ninja Academy Student

Age: 12

HP: 200

CP: 200

STR: 14

VIT: 8

DEX: 10

INT: 45

WIS: 28

LUK: 18

Perfect memory: Able to memorize and recall any memory perfectly, +4 INT per level and +3 WIS per level

Perfect Chakra Control: Able to control Chakra perfectly, +5 WIS per level

Fan girl: -50% WIS

Sakura is the only child of Mebuki and Kizashi Haruno. She had an ordinary childhood, raised by her parents without. She is in line for the "Top Kunoichi of the year".

"What a waste of potential." Raito sighed as he closed the status tab.

"Seal of confrontation." Iruka-sensei announced as he stood in the center of the stage, acting as the referee for the match.

Raito and Sakura both formed the seal and got into their battle stances.

"FIGHT." Iruka-sensei shouted, signaling the start of the match.

"Haruno, you should just quit now," Raito smirked as he lowered his center of gravity. He had lost count of how many times he had faced her in this very room, and every single time he had defeated her, then listened to her whining.

"I can't, Sasuke-kun is looking at me," Sakura shouted, turning heads and causing Raito to roll his eyes in disgust.

"Ugh, delusional fangirl," Raito muttered under his breath, and just as he was about to start a new notification tab appeared in front of his eyes

[Quest Alert – Sakura Blossom (Chain Quest)]

Despite being the smartest in the room, Sakura is always distracted by Sasuke, the object of her delusional affections. With a little help and guidance, she could greatly improve her skills.

Objective: Help Sakura improve.

Reward: 10 Exp

"Just ten-" Pupils dilated as Raito activated '[Chakra Sense]' as he sensed a fist flying towards his face.

Raito quickly activated his chakra, channeling it to his ankles and then to the corresponding muscles for his next move.

As Sakura's fist flew towards his cheek, Raito used his ankle as an axis and executed a smooth spin, turning a full circle. In one fluid motion, he grabbed Sakura and threw her out of the stage.

Iruka sighed as he marked Raito's win in his notebook and said, "Switch with Chōji when they finish their match."

Raito nodded and saw Iruka examining Sakura's wellbeing.

Raito glanced at his notification tab and clenched his teeth. He approached Iruka and Sakura, grabbed a bottle, and unscrewed it. After collecting a bit of the liquid in his hand, he sprinkled some on Sakura's face, startling Iruka.

Upon hearing Sakura groan, Raito said, "Buzz like a bee or bark like a dog, you will always be Sakura. Do you think Sasuke will notice you if you keep following him around all the time?"

Iruka chose not to intervene and allowed Raito to continue speaking.

"There are 29 other students in your class and he only remembers a few names. I am sorry to say, but you are not one of them."

He leaned in and spoke in softer tone. "He will never choose you. Unless you become someone strong, he won't even look at you, let alone talk or be with you."

"CHA!" A fist came flying towards Raito, but he easily caught it and even gave it a firm squeeze, making her cry out in pain.

[Quest Alert – Sakura Blossom (Chain Quest) – Success]

Raito closed the tab and immediately stood up. Feeling a shiver run down his spine, Raito felt like he was about to gag. 'It's a chain quest. I will get good rewards.'

[Quest Alert – Lone Avenger (Chain Quest)]

Raito skipped the rest and accepted the quest.

"Yoshizawa Raito, Uchiha Sasuke, get ready," Mari called out as she looked at Raito.

"If you feel that you cannot compete then you can back out." Mari said, looking at the two of them and scratching her head. She knew this match was going to be a pain in butt kind of situation. "A good shinobi must be able to recognize his condition before engaging, whenever possible."

Raito looked at Sasuke and made a Seal of Confrontation before getting into a battle stance. 'Sasuke after Sakura evens it out, somewhat.'

"Wanna go out to eat?" Raito asked, a playful smile across his face.

Sasuke raised his brows in confusion, then he finally heard the people behind him starting to talk.

"He wants to monopolize our Sasuke-kun,"

"Die, Raito."

"Go away."

Raito smile at the comments and looked at Sasuke's pale face.

Name: Uchiha Sasuke

Level: 11

Title: Ninja Academy Student (Grants 25% bonus experience until Level 10)

Age: 12

Health Points (HP): 1625/1625

Chakra Points (CP): 950/950

Strength (STR): 29

Vitality (VIT): 21

Dexterity (DEX): 33

Intelligence (INT): 22

Wisdom (WIS): 26

Luck (LUK): 10

Uchiha Clan Last Survivor: Grants a permanent bonus of +1000 HP and +500 CP, and increases affinity towards fire techniques.

Unawakened Dōjutsu: Provides a bonus of +1 DEX every other level and +1 INT per level.

Avenger: Grants a bonus to all stats when facing Uchiha Itachi.

Natural Genius: Increases learning speed by 50%. (Applies until the age of 20)

Hardworking: Grants a 10% bonus to all physical stats.

Uchiha Sasuke is the last surviving member of the once formidable Uchiha Clan, with the exception of his brother, Uchiha Itachi, the Clan Killer, who annihilated the entire clan, sparing only Sasuke. Fueled by hatred and an unquenchable thirst for vengeance, Sasuke will stop at nothing to acquire the power necessary to slay his brother.

Taking a deep breath, Raito dashed forward, his elbow aimed at Sasuke's chest, his other hand stabilizing his elbow to increase the force of the thrust.

Sasuke raised his guard, positioning both hands to intercept Raito's elbow strike.

At the last possible moment before the elbow connected, Sasuke smirked and swiftly pushed Raito's elbow down, using the opportunity to throw him off balance and launch him sideways. In a fluid motion, Sasuke grabbed Raito's jacket and maneuvered himself to deliver a powerful kick to Raito's back.

Feeling Sasuke's grip on his jacket and movement, Raito allowed Sasuke to move around him before quickly twisting his body and grabbing hold of Sasuke's arms. With another move in mind, Raito quickly stepped on Sasuke's foot.

In one swift motion, Raito caught Sasuke's hand with one of his own, while his other hand reached for the nape of Sasuke's neck, aiming to grab his jacket.

Sasuke winced in pain as Raito's foot came down hard on his, causing him to flinch. And before he could even think of retreating, he felt a sharp kick to the back of his knee.

His foot was trapped under Raito's, his leg buckled from the kick, and now he was losing his balance, about to crash onto the floor.

Where did it all go wrong?

'Snake Style – Coiling Fang Takedown'

Raito had Sasuke pinned to the ground in a dominant position, with one knee pressed firmly onto his chest and the other on his arm, restricting his movements. At the same time, one of Raito's hands was reaching for Sasuke's neck, while the other was poised in the air, ready to deliver a strike.

For a moment, the training hall was silent, and then shouts started to build up against Raito.

'If this wasn't just a spar, and if I had used my leg to…or even made a slight adjustment to where he would have been hit, but…' Raito looked at Sasuke's angry eyes and eased up on the pressure he was applying to his chest and arm.

And, that was his mistake.

Seizing the opportunity, Sasuke used his legs to launch a desperate kamikaze attack. With his remaining energy, he pushed his hand against the floor, raised his body and leg, and executed a basic kick.

Even if it didn't land a hit, it could force Raito to move.

Fortunately, Raito didn't let his guard down.

He absorbed the impact of the kick with his back and quickly went for a downward punch.

But Sasuke rolled away and jumped up, launching another punch towards Raito.

Block, punch.

Grab under elbow, punch.

Grab under elbow, headbutt.

Exhausted, the two rolled on the floor with locked arms, and heads pushing each other.

Mari looked at the two, who were silently eyeing each other.

It was a death match, where the winner gets… ahem, who cares…

"Get up, both of you. This isn't the time for glaring." Mari said with a professional demeanor.

"Move, Sasuke, Raito."

Raito and Sasuke stood up, let go of the arms but didn't let go of the wrist.

"You let go, first." Sasuke demanded, his eyes burning with intensity.

"Sure," Raito conceded, letting go of Sasuke's wrist only to swiftly pull him closer with his other hand. He pivoted, launching a high kick aimed at Sasuke's head.

Sasuke, anticipating the move, released Raito's wrist and deftly dodged by arching back.

He saw an opening in Raito's attack and jumped forward, his foot pounding the ground to propel him into a tackle.

Raito let out a sly chuckle. Using the force of his initial kick, he twisted his body and lifted his trailing leg.

As Sasuke hung suspended in mid-leap, the heel of Raito's foot connected squarely with his temple, sending him plummeting to the ground.

Raito lay on his back, struggling for breath, while Sasuke was sprawled face-down.

Mari ticked off Raito's name on her list before turning her attention to Sasuke.

[Quest Alert – Lone Avenger (Chain Quest) – Complete]

As the other instructors called the next group of six students, the previous contenders dispersed, each pair stood in front of their assigned mentors.

Raito and Sasuke approached Mari, while Naruto and Chōji made their way to Iruka.

Observing the pair, Mari commented, "You two are getting too chummy with each other's moves."

Mari shifted her gaze to Raito, "Don't try to distract him… if you can."

Raito let out a dissatisfied snort to that.

Then, addressing Sasuke, she added, "Don't think that you will always have an ideal situation."

"For the next two weeks," Mari continued, "I'll pair you both with other students." She snapped her notebook shut. "Overall, you're doing well. Keep up the progress."

The two students nodded in acknowledgment before heading back.

Raito looked at Sasuke's gloomy face and said, "Aren't you happy to know that your fan girls are still devoted as ever?"

Sasuke paused, his glare intensifying and the valley in his brows deepening.

Undeterred, Raito waved dismissively and strolled over to Chōji and Naruto, who were coming back from Iruka

Iruka glanced at Raito briefly before returning to his tasks.

"Chips?" Raito brought out a bag from his inventory and tore it open, offering a casual snack.

Chōji eagerly snatched the packet of chips and began munching away. Meanwhile, Raito used his Observe at Chōji.

"[Observe]"

Name: Akimichi Chōji

Level: 7

Title: Ninja Academy Student (Grants 25% bonus experience until Level 10)

Age: 12

HP: 1000/1275

CP: 500/500

STR: 24

VIT: 30

DEX: 13

INT: 19

WIS: 21

LUK: 26

Akimichi Clan Heir:

Permanent bonuses: +100 CP, +3 VIT per level, +3 STR per level

Higher affinity towards yang techniques

Calorie converter: Akimichi Clan is specialized in converting food for power.

Chōji, born into the Akimichi clan, is destined to become the Sixteenth Head of the clan after his father, Choza. He shares a close friendship with Shikamaru and is known as a gentle giant who avoids hurting others unless provoked by a certain three-letter word. His honesty and caring nature make him a reliable friend.

Naruto rubbed his hands together and glanced at Raito. "She's dangerous."

"Iwasawa? Yea, she really dangerous with poisons." He shifted his gaze from Iwasawa to Naruto, "If she was allowed to use poison, then she'd beat you in seconds."

As the academy ended, students hurried home. However, Raito found himself standing before Mari.

"Report to section A from tomorrow."

That was abrupt, sudden, explosive, sharp…

"What! Why?" Raito protested, "I am fine at section B."

"Hokage-sama's order."

That stopped all the other words that were going to come out of his mouth. But still, he had to protest, just for sake…

Raito frowned and spoke up. "Why now, near the end of the program? Wouldn't it have been better to do this at the beginning or in the middle?"

Mari sighed as she went from 0 to 100 as she grabbed Raito's head and said, "Tomorrow section A, understood?"

"Yes ma'am." Raito immediately accepted his fate, wary of any further head-squeezing consequences.